Montessori 101:
Some Basic
Information that Every
Montessori Parent
Should Know
by Tim Seldin, President
The Montessori Foundation
E very year thousands of young children begin
their education in Montessori schools around
the world. Their parents ask, Just what is this
thing called Montessori? Their questions are well
founded, because Montessori schools are normally very
different from the schools most of us attended when
we were young.
Those of us who have spent years around
Montessori children know that Montessori works!
Parents new to Montessori have to sort through a host
of conflicting impressions. When friends ask them to
tell them about their childrens new Montessori school,
most parents honestly dont know where to begin.
It all looked so nice when we visited the school last spring. But to tell
the truth, most of what the school told us about how Montessori works
sailed right past us! After all, it really is a bit much to take in all at
once, all this talk about the planes of development, sensitive periods,
and prepared environments. And just what is it that were supposed to
call Samanthas teachers? Are they directresses, mentors, facilitators, Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Ireland, India, Sri Lanka,
or are they guides? Gosh, I wonder if they ever just teach?
It all seems so terribly complicated, especially when
people seem to have such different impressions of
Montessori. Some rave about it, while others think that
you must be crazy to put your child in a Montessori
school. Some people are firmly convinced that
Montessori is too rigid and that it robs children of their
creativity; others object that it is completely unstruc-
tured and without any academic standards.
Isnt Montessori the sort of school where they allow the children to do
whatever they want? Perhaps it will work for your Sally, but Im afraid
that if my Danny were left to his own devices, hed never choose to do a
lick of work! He needs order, structure, a small-class size, and disci-
pline!
For more than thirty years, Ive tried to help parents
sort all this out so they could reassure themselves that
Montessori isnt going to leave their children academi-
cally handicapped and unable to make it in the real
world. Its still not easy to put Montessori into context
when the rest of the world seems so completely com-
mitted to a very different approach to raising children.
Montessori 101 was written to help parents begin to
discover and reconfirm what Montessori children know
Montessori works!
Tim Seldin, President
The Montessori Foundation
Photos in this article were taken at Montessori School of Anderson in
Anderson, SC
The Many Faces of Montessori in North America
T
here are perhaps 4,000 Montessori schools in the
United States and Canada and thousands more
around the world. Montessori schools are found
throughout Western Europe, Central and South America,
Australia, New Zealand, and much of Asia.
The movement is widespread in countries such as the
Korea, and Japan, and it is beginning to mushroom in
Eastern Europe, the republics of the former Soviet Union,
and China.
There is tremendous diversity within the community of
Montessori schools. Despite the impression that all
Montessori schools are the same, perhaps a franchise like
McDonalds, no two Montessori schools are the same.
Across the United States and Canada, we can find
Montessori schools in almost every community. They are
found in church basements, converted barns, shopping cen-
ters, former public schools, and on expansive campuses
with enrollments of hundreds of children and the air of
stature and stability.
We can find them in suburban and inner city public-
school systems. Montessori schools are often found in
charming homes the outcome of the individual vision of
the owner/director. Many are found in affluent communi-
ties, but just as many serve working-class neighborhoods
and the poor. We can find Montessori in Head Start pro-
grams, child-care centers in our inner cities, migrant work-
ers camps, and on Indian reservations.
Some Montessori schools pride themselves on remaining
faithful to what they see as Dr. Maria Montessoris original vi-
sion, while others appreciate flexibility and pragmatic adap-
tation. Each school reflects its own unique blend of facilities,
programs, personality, and interpretation of Dr. Montes-
soris vision.
5
 Most Montessori schools begin with
three year olds and extend through the
elementary grades. Every year more
schools open middle-school programs
at one end; infant-toddler programs at
the other.
Montessori schools offer a wide
range of programs. Many are focused on
meeting the needs of the working fami-
ly. Others describe themselves as col-
lege-preparatory programs. Public
Montessori programs pride themselves
on serving all children, while many inde-
pendent schools work hard to find the
perfect match of student, school, and
family values. The Montessori
Foundation and International
Montessori Council celebrate the diver-
sity to be found among Montessori
schools. Just as each child is unique, so
are the schools that we create unique
communities of parents and teachers.
What makes Montessori
schools different?
Montessori schools are not completely
different from other schools. Over the
last century, Dr. Maria Montessoris
ideas have had a profound and growing
influence on education around the
world. However, while individual ele-
ments of her program are finding their
way into more classrooms every year,
there is a cumulative impact that we see
when schools fully implement the entire
Montessori model which creates some-
thing quite distinct.
Here are a few key points to consider
as you look at Montessori schools more
closely:
Montessori schools begin with a
deep respect for children as unique indi-
viduals. They work from a deep concern
for their social and emotional develop-
ment.
Montessori schools are warm and
supportive communities of students,
teachers, and parents. Children dont
get lost in the crowd!
Montessori consciously teaches chil-
dren to be kind and peaceful.
Montessori classrooms are bright and
exciting environments for learning.
Montessori classes bring children to-
gether in multi-age groups, rather than
classes comprised of just one grade lev-
el. Normally they span three age levels.
Children stay with their teachers for
three years. This allows teachers to de-
velop close and long-term relationships
with their pupils, allows them to know
each childs learning style very well, and
encourages a strong sense of communi-
ty among the children. Every year more
non-Montessori schools adopt this high-
ly effective strategy.
Montessori classrooms are not run by
the teachers alone. Students are taught
to manage their own community and
develop uncanny leadership skills and
independence.
Montessori assumes that children are
born intelligent, they simply learn in dif-
ferent ways and progress at their own
pace. The Montessori approach to edu-
cation is consciously designed to recog-
nize and address different learning
styles, helping students learn to study
most effectively. Students progress as
they master new skills, moving ahead as
quickly as they are ready.
Tomorrows Child Magazine Back to School 2000
Montessori students rarely rely on
texts and workbooks. Why? Because
many of the skills and concepts that chil-
dren learn are abstract, and texts simply
dont bring them to life. Also, in the case
of reading, many reading series fail to
collect first rate and compelling stories
and essays; instead, Montessori relies
upon hands-on concrete learning mate-
rials and the library where children are
introduced to the best in literature and
reference materials.
Learning is not focused on rote drill
and memorization. The goal is to devel-
op students who really understand their
schoolwork.
Montessori students learn through
hands-on experience, investigation, and
research. They become actively engaged
in their studies, rather than passively
waiting to be spoon fed.
Montessori challenges and sets high
expectations for all students, not only
those considered gifted.
Students develop self-discipline and
an internal sense of purpose and moti-
vation. After graduation from Montes-
sori, these values serve them well in
high school, college, and in their lives as
adults.
Montessori schools normally reflect a
highly diverse student body, and their
curriculum promotes mutual respect
and a global perspective.
Students develop a love for the nat-
ural world. Natural science and outdoor
education is an important element of
our childrens experience.
The Montessori curriculum is careful-
ly structured and integrated to demon-
strate the connections among the differ-
ent subject areas. Every class teaches
critical thinking, composition,
and research. History lessons
link architecture, the arts, sci-
ence, and technology.
Students learn to care about
others through community ser-
vice.
Montessori teachers facilitate
learning, coach students along,
and come to know them as
friends and mentors.
Students learn not to be
afraid of making mistakes; they
come to see them as natural
steps in the learning process.
Montessori students learn to
collaborate and work together
in learning and on major pro-
jects. They strive for their per-
sonal best, rather than compete
against one another for the
highest grade in their class.
 messy, but he carefully cleans up and puts his materials
away as he has learned from more than two years in
Montessori.
At 8:30, his two teachers arrive, along with several more
children. Others follow over the next few minutes until all
30 students and two teachers quietly move about the room.
Montessori children work with hands-on learning materi-
als that make abstract concepts clear and concrete. They al-
low young students to develop a clear inner image of con-
cepts in mathematics, such as how big is a thousand, what
ts dark at 7:05 on this mid-winters morning when Jeanne
we mean when we refer to the hundreds column, and
Saunders pulls up to the drop-off circle at the Montessori
what is taking place when we divide one number by anoth-
school that her three children have attended since each
er. This approach makes sense to children.
was two years old.
Through this foundation of concrete experiential learn-
Jeanne has made this trip so often over the years that the
ing, operations in mathematics, such as addition, become
school feels like her second home. She works downtown and
clear and concrete, allowing the child to internalize a clear
typically cant leave work until after five. Her husband teaches
picture of how the process works.
in the local public schools and gets off much earlier. Hell
Teddy and another child have begun to work together to
pick the children up from the after-school program by 4:30,
construct and solve a mathematical problem. Using sets of
but if hes late, he knows that they will be fine until he arrives.
number cards, each decides how many units, tens, hun-
The school prides itself on being family-friendly, and working
dreds, and thousands will be in his addend. The cards show-
families appreciate its extended day and summer camp.
ing the units 1 to 9 are printed in green; the cards showing
Teddy, Josh, and Jennifer definitely think of the school as
the numbers from 10 to 90 are printed in blue; the hun-
their second family. Jennifer is one of those children who, af-
dreds from 100 to 900 are printed with red ink; and the
ter ten years in Montessori, speaks about her school with af-
cards showing the numbers 1000 to 9000 are printed in
fection and conviction. Visitors often find her coming up
green again, because they represent units of thousands.
without a moments hesitation to greet them and offer a cup
As Teddy and his friend construct their numbers, they
of coffee or campus tour. When people ask her if she likes it
decide how many units they want, find the card showing
in Montessori, she will smile and say, Sure, how could any-
that quantity, and place it at the upper right-hand corner of
one not love it here. Your teachers are your best friends, the
their work space. Next they go to the bank, a central collec-
work is really interesting, and the other kids are like my
tion of golden bead material, and gather the number of unit
brothers and sisters. Its a family. You feel really close to
beads that corresponds with the number card selected. This
everyone.
process is repeated with the tens, hundreds, and thousands.
Jennifer walks Teddy, age four, and Josh, whos seven, up
The two addends are combined in the process we call ad-
to morning supervision. After dropping them off, she walks
dition. Beginning with the units, the children count the
down the hill to the Upper School where she is a seventh
combined quantities to determine the result of adding the
grader. She joins two of her friends in the commons, sits, and
two together. If the result is nine or less, they simply find the
talks quietly, waiting for her first class to start.
large number card that represents the answer. If the addi-
Teddys morning supervision is in his normal classroom.
tion has resulted in a quantity of ten beads or more, the chil-
After hanging up his coat, he walks over to Judy, the staff
dren stop at the count of ten and carry these unit beads to
member in charge of his room until school officially begins at
the bank to exchange them for a ten bar: ten units equals
8:30. He asks if there is anything ready to eat. Judy suggests
one unit of ten. This process is repeated with the tens, hun-
that he help himself. He scoops out a bowl of cereal from a
dreds, and thousands.
small bin and adds milk. He takes his morning snack over to
Its about 10 oclock now, and Teddy is a bit hungry. He
a table and eats. Children and their parents drift into the
wanders over to the snack table and prepares himself sever-
room every so often, and gradually the number of children in
al pieces of celery stuffed with peanut butter. He pours him-
the early morning program grows to about 15.
self a cup of apple juice, using a little pitcher that is just right
After eating his breakfast, Teddy meanders over to the
for his small hands. When he is finished, Teddy wipes his
easel and begins to paint with Teresa, a little girl just three,
placemat.
who has only joined the class over the last few weeks. They
Clearing up his snack has put Teddy in the mood to real-
paint quietly, talking back and forth about nothing in particu-
ly clean something, and he selects table washing. He gathers
lar. Eventually, Teddy tires of painting and cleans up. He is
the bucket, little pitcher, sponge, scrub brush, towel, and
tempted for a moment just to walk away and leave the easel
soap needed and proceeds slowly and methodically to scrub
a small table. As he works, hes absorbed
in the patterns that his brush and
sponge make in the soap suds on the
tables surface. Teddy returns everything
to its storage place. When he is finished,
the table is more or less clean and dry. A
four year old washes a table for the
sheer pleasure of the process; that it
leads to a cleaner surface is incidental.
What Teddy is learning above all else is
an inner sense of order, a greater sense
of independence, and a higher ability to
concentrate and follow a complex se-
quence of steps.
Teddy moves freely around the class,
selecting activities that capture his inter-
est. In a very real sense, Teddy and his
classmates are responsible for the care
of this child-sized environment. When
they are hungry, they prepare their own
snack and drink.
They go to the bathroom without as-
sistance. When something spills, they
help each other carefully clean things
up. We find children cutting raw fruit
and vegetables, sweeping, dusting,
washing windows. They set tables, tie
their own shoes, polish silver, and
steadily grow in
their self-confidence
and independence.
Noticing that the
plants needs water-
ing, Teddy carries
the watering can from plant to plant,
barely spilling a drop.
Now its 11:00, and one of his teach-
ers, Ann, comes over and asks him how
the morning has been going. They en-
gage in conversation about his latest en-
thusiasms, which leads Ann to suggest
another reading lesson.
She and Teddy sit down at a small
rug with several wooden tablets on
which the shapes of letters are traced in
sandpaper. Ann selects a card and slowly
traces out the letter d, carefully pro-
nouncing the letters phonetic sound:
duh, duh, duh. Teddy traces the letter
with his tiny hand and repeats the
sound made by his teacher.
Teddy doesnt know this as the letter
d; for the next year or so, he will only
call it by its phonetic sound: duh. This
way, he never needs to learn the familiar
process of converting from the letter
name, d, to the sound it makes, duh.
Continuing on with two or three addi-
tional letters, Ann slowly helps Teddy
build up a collection of letters which he
knows by their phonetic sounds.
Ann leads Teddy through a three-
step process. Teddy, this is duh. Can
you say duh? Terrific! Now, this is a buh
(the letter b). Teddy, can you show me
the duh? Can you give me the buh? Fine.
Okay, what is this (holding up one of
the sandpaper letters just introduced)?
Teddy responds, and the process contin-
ues for another few minutes. The entire
lesson is fairly brief; perhaps 15 minutes
or so. Before long, Teddy will begin to
put sounds together to form simple
three-letter words.
Teddys day continues just like the
morning began. He eats his lunch with
the class at 11:45, after which he goes
outside with his friends to play in the
snow. After lunch, the Spanish teacher
comes into the room and begins to work
with small groups of students. Eventually,
she taps Teddy on the shoulder and asks
him if he would like to join her for a les-
son. He smiles, but graciously declines.
He is too engaged in the project that hes
chosen.
In the afternoon he does some more
art, listens to selections from a recording
of the Nutcracker ballet, works on his
shape names with the geometry cabinet,
and completes a puzzle map of the
United States.
When the day is over, Teddy has prob-
ably completed 20 to 30 different activi-
ties, most representing curriculum con-
tent quite advanced for someone who, af-
ter all, just turned four two months ago.
But when his dad picks him up at 4:50,
his response to the usual question of
What did you do in school today is no
different from many children, Oh, I
dont know. I guess I did a lot of stuff!

Dr. Maria Montessori:

A Historical Perspective
To aid life, leaving it free, however, to unfold
itself, that is the basic task of the educator.
Ours was a house for children, rather than a
real school. We had prepared a place for children, where a dif-
fused culture could be assimilated, without any need for direct
instruction...Yet these children learned to read and write before
they were five, and no one had given them any lessons. At that
time it seemed miraculous that children of four and a half
should be able to write, and that they should have learned with-
out the feeling of having been taught.
We puzzled over it for a long time. Only after repeated experi-
ments did we conclude with certainty that all children are en-
dowed with this capacity to absorb culture. If this be true - we
then argued - if culture can be acquired without effort, let us
provide the children with other elements of culture. And then we
saw them absorb far more than reading and writing: botany,
zoology, mathematics, geography, and all with the same ease,
spontaneously and without getting tired.
And so we discovered that education is not something which
the teacher does, but that it is a natural process which devel-
ops spontaneously in the human being. It is not acquired by
listening to words, but in virtue of experiences in which the
child acts on his environment. The teachers task is not to
talk, but to prepare and arrange a series of motives for cul-
tural activity in a special environment made for the child.
My experiments, conducted in many different countries,
have now been going on for forty years (Ed. note: now more
than ninety years), and as the children grew up, parents kept
asking me to extend my methods to the later ages. We then
found that individual activity is the one factor that stimu-
lates and produces development, and that this is not more
true for the little ones of preschool age than it is for the junior,
middle, and upper school children.
Dr. Maria Montessori
The Absorbent Mind

8
 M
aria Montessori is as contro- schedule to support various social-re- tulate the existence of developmental peri-
versial a figure in education to- form movements. Early in her career, ods in normal human growth. During these
day as she was a half century she began to accept speaking engage- sensitive periods, a child must experience
ago. Alternately heralded as the centurys ments throughout Europe on behalf of stimulation or grow up forever lacking the
leading advocate for early childhood edu- the womens movement, peace efforts, adult skills and intellectual concepts that he
cation or dismissed as outdated and irrel- and child labor-law reform. Montessori missed at the stage when they can be readi-
evant, her research and the studies that become well known and highly regard- ly learned! Although Itards efforts to teach
she inspired helped change the course of ed throughout Europe, which undoubt- the wild boy were barely successful, he
education. edly contributed to the publicity that followed a methodical approach in design-
Those who studied under her and surrounded her schools. ing the process, arguing that all education
went on to make their own contributions In 1901, Montessori was appointed would benefit from the use of careful ob-
to education and child psychology in- Director of the new Orthophrenic servation and experimentation. This idea
clude Anna Freud, Jean Piaget, Alfred School attached to the University of had tremendous appeal to the scientifically
Adler, and Erik Erikson. Many elements of Rome, formerly used as the asylum for trained Montessori and later became the
modern education have been adapted the deficient and insane children of cornerstone of her method. From Edouard
from Montessoris theories. She is credit- the city, most of whom were probably Seguin, Montessori drew further confirma-
ed with the development of the open retarded or autistic. She initiated reform tion of Itards work, along with a far more
classroom, individualized education, ma- in a system that formerly had served specific and organized system for applying
nipulative learning materials, teaching merely to confine mentally handicapped it to the everyday education of the handi-
toys, and programmed instruction. In the youngsters in empty rooms. Recogniz- capped. Today Seguin is recognized as the
last 35 years, educators in Europe and ing her patients need for stimulation, father of our modern techniques of special
North America have begun to recognize purposeful activity, and self-esteem, education.
the consistency between the Montessori Montessori insisted that the staff speak From these two predecessors, Montes-
approach with what we have learned to the inmates with the highest respect. sori took the idea of a scientific approach to
from research into child development. She set up a program to teach her education, based on observation and ex-
Maria Montessori was an individual young charges how to care for them- perimentation. She belongs to the child
ahead of her time. She was born in 1870 selves and their environment. study school of thought, and she pursued
in Ancona, Italy, to an educated her work with the careful training
but not affluent middle-class and objectivity of the biologist
family. She grew up in a country Maria Montessori is as studying the natural behavior of
considered most conservative in
its attitude toward women, yet
controversial a figure in an animal in the forest. She stud-
ied her retarded youngsters, lis-
even against the considerable education today as she was tening and carefully noting every-
opposition of her father and a half century ago. thing that they did and said.
teachers, Montessori pursued a Slowly she began to get a sense of
scientific education and was the who they really were and what
first woman to become a physician in methods worked best. Her success was giv-
Italy. At the same time, she began a metic- en widespread notice when, two years after
As a practicing physician associated ulous study of all research previously she began, many of Montessoris defi-
with the University of Rome, she was a done on the education of the mentally cient adolescents were able to pass the
scientist, not a teacher. It is ironic that she handicapped. Her studies led Montes- standard sixth grade tests of the Italian pub-
became famous for her contributions in a sori to the work of two almost forgotten lic schools. Acclaimed for this miracle,
field that she had rejected as the tradi- French physicians of the eighteenth and Montessori responded by suggesting that
tional refuge for women at a time when nineteenth centuries: Jean Itard and her results proved only that public schools
few professions were open to them other Edouard Seguin. Itard is most famous should be able to get dramatically better re-
than homemaking or the convent. The for his work with the Wild Boy of sults with normal children.
Montessori method evolved almost by ac- Aveyron, a youth who had been found Unfortunately, the Italian Ministry of
cident from a small experiment that Dr. wandering naked in the forest, having Education did not welcome this idea, and
Montessori carried out on the side. Her spent ten years living alone. The boy she was denied access to school-aged chil-
genius stems not from her teaching abili- could not speak and lacked almost all of dren. Frustrated in her efforts to carry the
ty, but from her recognition of the impor- the skills of everyday life. Here apparent- experiment on with public-school students,
tance of what she stumbled upon. ly was a natural man, a human being in 1907 Montessori jumped at the chance
As a physician, Dr. Montessori special- who had developed without the benefit to coordinate a day-care center for work-
ized in pediatrics and psychiatry. She of culture and socialization with his own ing-class children who were too young to
taught at the medical school of the kind. Itard hoped from this study to attend public school.
University of Rome, and through its free shed some light on the age-old debate This first Casa dei Bambini or
clinics, she came into frequent contact about what proportion of human intelli- Childrens House was located in the
with the children of the working class and gence and personality is hereditary and worst slum district of Rome, and the condi-
poor. These experiences convinced her what proportion stems from learned be- tions Montessori faced were appalling. Her
that intelligence is not rare and that most havior. first class consisted of fifty children from
newborns come into the world with a hu- Itards experiment was a limited suc- two through five years of age, taught by
man potential that will be barely revealed. cess, for he found the wild boy unco- one untrained caregiver.
Her work reinforced her humanistic operative and unwilling or unable to The children remained at the center
ideals, and she made time in her busy learn most things. This led Itard to pos- from dawn to dusk while their parents

Tomorrows Child Magazine Back to School 2000 9

 worked. They had to be fed two meals a
day, bathed regularly, and given a pro-
gram of medical care. The children them-
selves were typical of extreme inner-city
poverty conditions. They entered the
Childrens House on the first day crying
and pushing, exhibiting generally aggres-
sive and impatient behavior. Montessori,
not knowing whether her experiment
would work under such conditions, be-
gan by teaching the older children how
to help with the everyday tasks that need-
ed to be done. She also introduced the
manipulative perceptual puzzles that she
had used with the retarded.
The results surprised her, for unlike
her retarded children who had to be
prodded to use the materials, these little
ones were drawn to the work she intro-
duced. Children who had wandered aim-
lessly the week before began to settle
down to long periods of constructive ac-
tivity. They were fascinated with the puz-
zles and perceptual training devices. But,
to Montessoris amazement, the young
children took the greatest delight in
learning practical everyday living skills re-
inforcing their independence.
Each day they begged her to show
them more, even applauding with delight
when Montessori taught them the cor-
rect use of a handkerchief. Soon the old-
er children were taking care of the
school, assisting their teacher with the
preparation and serving of meals and the
maintenance of a spotless environment.
Their behavior as a group changed dra-
matically, from street urchins running
wild to models of grace and courtesy. It
was little wonder that the press found
such a human interest story appealing
and promptly broadcast it to the world.
Montessori education is sometimes
criticized for being too structured and
academically demanding of young chil-
dren. Montessori would have laughed at
this suggestion. She often said, I studied
my children, and they taught me how to
teach them. Montessori made a practice
of paying close attention to their sponta-
neous behavior, arguing that only in this
way could a teacher know how to teach.
Traditionally, schools pay little attention
to children as individuals, other than to
demand that they adapt to our standards.
Montessori argued that the educators
job is to serve the child; determining
what is needed to make the greatest
progress. To her, a child who fails in
school should not be blamed, any more
than a doctor should blame a patient
who does not get well fast enough. It is
the job of the physician to help us find
the way to cure ourselves and the educa-
tors job to facilitate the natural process
of learning.
10
Montessoris children exploded into
academics. Too young to go to public
school, they begged to be taught how to
read and write. They learned to do so
quickly and enthusiastically, using spe-
cial manipulative materials Montessori
designed for maximum appeal and ef-
fectiveness. The children were fascinat-
ed by numbers; to meet this interest,
the mathematically inclined Montessori
developed a series of concrete math
learning materials that has never been
surpassed. Soon her four and five year
olds were performing four-digit addition
and subtraction operations and in many
cases pushing on even farther. Their in-
terests blossomed in other areas as well,
compelling an overworked physician to
spend night after night designing new
materials to keep pace with the children
in geometry, geography, history, and
natural science.
The final proof of the childrens inter-
est came shortly after her first school be-
came famous, when a group of well in-
tentioned women gave them a mar-
velous collection of lovely and expensive
toys. The new gifts held the childrens
attention for a few days, but they soon
returned to the more interesting learn-
ing materials. To Montessoris surprise,
children who had experienced both,
preferred work over play most of the
time. If she were here today, Montessori
would probably add: Children read and
do advanced mathematics in Montessori
schools not because we push them, but
because this is what they do when given
the correct setting and opportunity. To
deny them the right to learn because
we, as adults, think that they shouldnt is
illogical and typical of the way schools
have been run before.
Montessori evolved her method
through trial and error, making educat-
ed guesses about the underlying mean-
ing of the childrens actions. She was
quick to pick up on their cues, and con-
stantly experimented with the class.
For example, Montessori tells of the
morning when the teacher arrived late
to find that the children had crawled
through a window and gone right to
work. At the beginning, the learning ma-
terials, having cost so much to make,
were locked away in a tall cabinet. Only
the teacher had a key and would open it
and hand the materials to the children
upon request. In this instance, the
teacher had neglected to lock the cabi-
net the night before. Finding it open,
the children had selected one material
apiece and were working quietly. As
Montessori arrived, the teacher was
scolding the children for taking them
out without permission. She recognized
that the childrens behavior showed that
they were capable of selecting their own
work and removed the cabinet and re-
placed it with low, open shelves on which
the activities were always available to the
children. Today this may sound like a minor
change, but it contradicted all educational
practice and theory of that period.
One discovery followed another, giving
Montessori an increasingly clear view of the
inner mind of the child. She found that little
children were capable of long periods of
quiet concentration, even though they
rarely showed signs of it in everyday set-
tings. Although they were often careless
and sloppy, they respond positively to an at-
mosphere of calm and order. Montessori
noticed that the logical extension of the
young childs love for a consistent and of-
ten-repeated routine is an environment in
which everything has a place.
Her children took tremendous delight in
carefully carrying their work to and from
the shelves, taking great pains not to bump
into anything or spill the smallest piece.
They walked carefully through the rooms,
instead of running wildly as they did on the
streets. Montessori discovered that the en-
vironment itself was all important in obtain-
ing the results that she had observed. Not
wanting to use school desks, she had car-
penters build child-sized tables and chairs.
She was the first to do so, recognizing the
frustration that a little child experiences in
an adult-sized world.
Eventually she learned to design entire
schools around the size of the children. She
had miniature pitchers and bowls prepared
and found knives that fit a childs tiny hand.
The tables were light-weight, allowing two
children to move them alone. The children
learned to control their movements, dislik-
ing the way the calm was disturbed when
they knocked into things. Montessori stud-
ied the traffic pattern of the rooms as well,
arranging the furnishings and the activity
area to minimize congestion and tripping.
The children loved to sit on the floor, so
she bought little rugs to define their work
areas, and the children quickly learned to
walk around them.
Through the years, Montessori schools
carried this environmental engineering
throughout the entire building and outside
environment, designing child-sized toilets
and low sinks, windows low to the ground,
low shelves, and miniature hand and gar-
den tools of all sorts. Some of these ideas
were eventually adapted by the larger edu-
cational community, particularly at the
nursery and kindergarten levels. Many of
the puzzles and educational devices now in
use at the preschool and elementary levels
are direct copies of Montessoris original
ideas. However, there is far more of her
work that never entered the mainstream,
Tomorrows Child Magazine Back to School 2000
and educators who are searching for new,
more effective answers are finding the ac-
cumulated experience of the Montessori
community to be of great interest.
Maria Montessoris first Childrens
House received overnight attention, and
thousands of visitors came away amazed
and enthusiastic. Worldwide interest
surged as she duplicated her first school
in other settings with the same results.
Montessori captured the interest and
imagination of national leaders and scien-
tists, mothers and teachers, labor leaders
and factory owners. As an internationally
respected scientist, Montessori had a rare
credibility in a field where many others
had promoted opinions, philosophies,
and models that have not been readily
duplicated. The Montessori method of-
fered a systematic approach that translat-
ed very well to new settings. In the first 35
years of this century, the Montessori
method seemed to offer something for
everyone. Conservatives appreciated the
calm, responsible behavior of the little
children, along with their love for work.
Liberals applauded the freedom and
spontaneity. Many political leaders saw
it as a practical way to reform the out-
moded school systems of Europe and
North America, as well as an approach
that they hoped would lead to a more
productive and law-abiding populace.
Scientists of all disciplines heralded its
imperical foundation, along with the ac-
celerated achievement of the little chil-
dren. Montessori rode a wave of enthu-
siastic support that should have
changed the face of education far more
dramatically than it has.
Montessoris prime productive peri-
od lasted from the opening of the first
Childrens House in 1907 until the1930s.
During this time, she continued her
study of children, and developed a vastly
expanded curriculum and methodology
for the elementary level as well. Montes-
sori schools were set up throughout
Europe and North America, and Dr.
Montessori gave up her medical practice
to devote all of her energies to advocating
the rights and intellectual potential of all
children. During her lifetime, Dr.
Montessori was acknowledged as one of
the worlds leading educators. Education
moved beyond Maria Montessori, adapting
only those elements of her work that fit
into existing theories and methods.
Ironically, the Montessori approach cannot
be implemented as a series of piecemeal
reforms. It requires a complete restructur-
ing of the school and the teachers role.
Only recently, as our understanding of
child development has grown, have we re-
discovered how clear and sensible was her
insight. Today there is a growing consen-
sus among psychologists and develop-
mental educators that many of her ideas
were decades ahead of their time. As the
movement gains support and begins to
spread into the American public school
sector, one can readily say that Montessori,
begun almost 100 years ago, is a remark-
ably modern approach.

n her research, Dr. Montessori noted specific characteris-
tics associated with the childs interests and abilities at each
plane of development. She argued that a school carefully
designed to meet the needs and interests of the child will
work more effectively because it doesnt fight human nature.
Montessori taught teachers how to follow the child through
careful observation, allowing each student to reveal her
strengths and weaknesses, interests and anxieties, and strate-
gies that work best to facilitate the development of her human
potential.
This focus on the whole child led Dr. Montessori to devel-
op a very different sort of school from the traditional adult-
centered classroom. To emphasize this difference, she named
her first school the Casa dei Bambini or the Childrens
House.
There is something profound in her choice of words, for
the Montessori classroom is not the domain of the adults, but
rather it is a carefully prepared environment designed to facili-
tate the development of the childrens independence and
sense of personal empowerment. This is the childrens com-
munity. They move freely within it, selecting work that cap-
tures their interest. Even very small children assist with the
care of the environment. When they are hungry, they prepare
their own snacks. They go to the bathroom without assistance.
When something spills, they help each other carefully clean
up.
Four generations of parents have been amazed to see small
children in Montessori classrooms cut raw fruits and vegeta-
bles, sweep and dust, carry pitchers of water and pour liquids
with barely a drop spilled. The children normally go about
their work so calmly and purposely that it is clear to even the
casual observer that they are the masters of the house.
Montessoris first Childrens House, opened in 1907, was
made up of 60 inner-city children who largely came from dys-
functional families. In her book, The Montessori Method, Dr.
Montessori describes the transformation that took place dur-
12
ing the first few months, as the children evolved into a fami-
ly. They prepared and served the daily meals, washed the
pots and dishes, helped the younger children bathe and
change their clothes, swept, cleaned, and worked in the gar-
den. These very young children developed a sense of maturi-
ty and connectedness that helped them realize a much high-
er level of their potential as human beings.
While times have changed, the need to feel connected is
still as strong as ever. In fact, for todays children it is proba-
bly even more important. Montessori gives children the mes-
sage that they belong that their school is like a second
family. Many Montessori students describe their experience
in words quite similar to these written by Frances Merenda, a
1990 graduate of the Barrie School in Silver Spring, Maryland.
I started in Montessori at age 2. Im a product of the entire sys-
tem. I did well in the lower grades and upper school. But still,
many people wondered if I had been prepared for college,
whether I could make it in a real school. The skepticism of so
many acquaintances was so disconcerting that I never bothered
to step back and see what 15 years of trust, respect, teaching,
and learning had done for me. When I went off to college at
Northwestern University, I left my support system and commu-
nity behind and entered a world that was much colder and un-
caring. At first, I deeply missed that sense of belonging. I didnt
realize that Barrie had not only given me a second family, but
had also taught me how to build new friendships, support sys-
tems, and community wherever I go. Now, at Northwestern, I
have used my years of experience in community building to
cultivate secure relationships with people I have come to know.
Barrie did more for me than just prepare me academically for
college, it prepared me for anything to which I chose to apply
myself. I feel prepared for life and I wouldnt want it any other
way.
Tomorrows Child Magazine Back to School 2000
 The Prepared
Environment
M
ontessori classrooms tend to
fascinate children and their
parents. They are normally
bright, warm, and inviting, filled with
plants, animals, art, music, and books.
There are interest centers filled with in-
triguing learning materials, mathemati-
cal models, maps, charts, fossils, histori-
cal artifacts, computers, scientific appa-
ratus, perhaps a small natural-science
museum, and animals that the children
are raising.
Montessori classrooms are common-
ly referred to as a prepared environ-
ment. This name reflects the care and at-
tention that is given to creating a learn-
ing environment that will reinforce the
childrens independence and intellectu-
al development.
You would not expect to find rows of
desks in a Montessori classroom. The
rooms are set up to facilitate student dis-
cussion and stimulate collaborative
learning. One glance and it is clear that
children feel comfortable and safe.
The Montessori classroom is orga-
nized into several curriculum areas, usu-
typical
Montessori
class is
made up of 25 to
35 children, more
or less evenly di-
vided between
boys and girls,
covering a three-
year age span.
This practice has
been a hallmark
of the Montessori
approach for al-
most 100 years.
Classes are nor-
mally taught by a
certified Montes-
sori educator teaching with one or more
assistants or by two Montessori teach-
ers.
Classes tend to be stable communi-
ties, with only the oldest third moving
on to the next level each year. With two-
thirds of the children returning each fall,
Montessori encourages a very different
level of relationship between children
14
ally including: language arts (reading, lit-
erature, grammar, creative writing,
spelling, and handwriting), mathematics
and geometry, everyday living skills, sen-
sory awareness exercises and puzzles,
geography, history, science, art, music,
and movement. Most rooms will include
a classroom library. Each area is made
up of one or more shelf units, cabinets,
and display tables with a wide variety of
materials on open display, ready for use
as the children select them.
and their peers, as well as between chil-
dren and their teachers.
The levels usually found in a
Montessori school correspond to the
developmental stages of childhood:
Infant (birth through 18 months);
Toddler (18 months to age 3); Early
Childhood (age 3 to 6); Lower
Elementary (age 6 to 8); Upper
Elementary (age 9 to 11); Middle School
(age 12 to 14); and Secondary (age 15 to
18). At each level, the program and cur-
riculum are logical and highly consistent
extensions of what has come before.
Many pre-schools are proud of their
very small group sizes, and parents often
wonder why Montessori classes are so
much larger.
Schools that place children together
into small groups assume that the
teacher is the source of instruction; a
very limited resource even in a small
class. These schools reason that as the
number of children decreases, the time
that teachers have to spend with each
child increases. Ideally, we would have a
one-on-one tutorial situation.
Tomorrows Child Magazine Back to School 2000
Students are typically found scattered
around the classroom, working alone or
with one or two others. They tend to be-
come so involved in their work that visi-
tors are immediately struck by the
peaceful atmosphere.
It may take a moment to spot the
teachers within the environment. They
will normally be found working with
one or two children at a time, advising,
presenting a new lesson, or quietly ob-
serving the class at work.
But the best teacher of a three year
old is often another child who is just a
little bit older and has mastered a skill.
This process is good for both the tutor
and the younger child. In the Montes-
sori approach, the teacher is not the pri-
mary focus.
Montessori encourages children to
learn from each other. By having
enough children in each age group, all
students will find others at, above, and
below their present level of develop-
ment. This also makes Montessori
schools economically more viable, al-
lowing schools to attract teachers with
far greater training and experience.
Some parents worry that by having
younger children in the same class as
older ones, one age group or the other
will be shortchanged. They fear that the
younger children will absorb the teach-
ers time and attention, or that the im-
portance of covering the kindergarten
curriculum for the five year olds will pre-
vent them from giving the three and
four year olds the emotional support
and stimulation that they need. My ex-
perience has convinced me that both
concerns are misguided and I cant
imagine teaching in any other way.
There are several distinct advantages
to the Montessori classroom model.
In a well run and established
Montessori class children are typically
far more independent and self-disci-
plined. One factor that makes this possi-
ble is that each teachers class of stu-
dents doesnt leave at the end of the
school year.
Children normally enter at age three
and stay for a full three-year cycle, when
they move on to the first year of the
Montessori 6-9 year-old class. With two-
thirds of the students returning each
September, the classroom culture is sur-
prisingly stable.
Each child is a unique individual; no
two are the same. Even with the smallest
teacher-pupil ratios, each will have her
own interests, abilities, strengths and
weaknesses. Each child learns at her
own pace and will be ready for any given
lesson in her own time, not on the
teachers schedule of lessons.
Each child has her own learning style.
Montessori teachers treat each child as
an individual and customize lessons to
fit her needs, personality, and interests.
Since Montessori allows children to
progress through the curriculum at their
own pace, there is no academic reason
to group children according to one
grade level.
In a mixed-class, children can always
find peers who are working at their cur-
rent level. Working in one class for two
or three years allows students to devel-
op a strong sense of community with
their classmates and teachers. The age
range also allows the especially gifted
child the stimulation of intellectual
peers, without requiring that she skip a
grade and feel emotionally out of place.
To accommodate the needs of indi-
vidual learners, Montessori classrooms
have to include curriculum to cover the
entire span of interests and abilities up
through the oldest and most accelerat-
ed students in the class. This creates a
highly enriched learning environment.
In multi-level classrooms, younger
children are constantly stimulated by
the interesting work in which the older
ones are engaged.
At the same time, in multi-level class-
rooms, older students serve as tutors
and role models for the younger ones,
which helps them in their own mastery
(we learn things best of all when we
teach them to someone else) and leaves
them beaming with pride.
One of my most enduring memories of be-
ing a Montessori child is the sense of family I
had with my classmates and teacher. Unlike
traditional schools, where I would have
moved into a new class with a new teacher
every year, I had a wonderful continuity.
When I moved up from the 3 to 6 class to ele-
mentary, I moved up with a group of stu-
dents with whom I had been in class for
three years already. We stayed together for
the next six years. Today, nearly twenty
years later, I can tell you where my class-
mates are and what they are doing. Better
still, my teacher, Mrs. Fleck and I are still
very close. In fact, her grandson was in my
very first class when I became a Montessori
teacher!
When I left Montessori, I never found anoth-
er experience like that in the private and
public schools I attended. There, I felt that I
was just a name on the roll rather than an
important individual. In my Montessori
class, we were each separate and special
people, and together we made up a very spe-
cial family. This is an experience that will
remain with me always.
Dorothy Hamilton Porcher
Montessori Child, Montessori Teacher

ll children and most adults
learn best through direct expe-
rience and the process of in-
vestigation and discovery. Most students
do not retain or truly grasp much of
what they learn through memoriza-
tion.
Asking a child to sit back and watch a
teacher perform a process or experi-
ment is like asking a one-year-old not to
put everything into his mouth. Children
Tomorrows Child Magazine Back to School 2000
need to manipulate and explore every- textbook. Each material isolates and
thing that catches their interest. It is teaches one concept or skill at a time. In
ironic that most schools still teach pri- developing the materials, Dr.
marily through lecture, textbooks, and Montessori carefully analyzed the skills
workbooks, with students still spending and concepts involved in each subject
their days at a desk praying for the bell and noted the sequence in which chil-
to ring. dren most easily master them. She then
Dr. Montessori recognized that con- studied how children seemed to be able
crete learning apparatus makes learning to most easily grasp abstract concepts
much more rewarding. The Montessori and designed each element to bring the
learning materials are not the abstract into a clear and concrete form.
method itself; they are simply
tools that we use to stimulate
the child into logical thought
and discovery. The Montessori
materials are provocative and
simple, each carefully designed
to appeal to children at a given
level of development.
An important concept is that
for each age level of the
Montessori curriculum there is
an extensive collection of care-
fully defined educational mate-
rials that are the equivalent of
the chapters in a traditional
15
 The materials are displayed on low,
open shelves that are easily accessible to
even the youngest children. They are
arranged to provide maximum eye ap-
peal without clutter. Each has a specific
place on the shelves, arranged from the
upper left-hand corner in sequence to
the lower right, following their se-
quence in the curriculum. The materials
are arranged in sequence from the most
simple to the most complex and from
the most concrete to those that are
most abstract. Because of the order with
which they are arranged in the environ-
ment, children can find precisely what
they need whenever they wish.
Each of the Montessori materials is
designed to allow children to work inde-
pendently with only the lightest level of
introduction and ongoing support from
the teachers. This is made possible by a
n Montessori, the school day is not
divided into fixed time periods for
each subject. Teachers call stu-
dents together as they are ready, for
lessons individually or in small groups.
A typical days work is divided into
fundamentals that have been assigned
by the faculty and self-initiated projects
and research selected by the student.
Students work to complete their assign-
ments at their own pace typically
with care and enthusiasm. Teachers
closely monitor their students progress,
keeping the level of challenge high.
Teacher feedback to students and par-
16
built-in design element, the Control of
Error, which allows students to deter-
mine for themselves if they have done
each exercise correctly.
The materials can be used repeatedly
at different developmental levels. Each
material has multiple levels of challenge.
Lessons are brief introductions, after
which the children repeat the exercise
over many days, weeks or months until
they attain mastery. Interest leads them
to explore variations and extensions in-
herent within the design of the materials
at many levels over the years.
For example, the Trinomial Cube,
which presents a complex and challeng-
ing three-dimensional puzzle to the
five year old, is used to introduce the
elementary child to the algebraic con-
cept of the exponential powers of poly-
nomials.
ents helps students learn how to pace
themselves and take a great deal of per-
sonal responsibility for their studies,
both of which are essential for later suc-
cess in college and in life.
We encourage students to work to-
gether collaboratively, and many assign-
ments can only be accomplished
through teamwork.
Students constantly share their inter-
ests and discoveries with each other.
The youngest experience the daily stim-
ulation of their older friends and are nat-
urally spurred on to be able to do what
the big kids can do.
Tomorrows Child Magazine Back to School 2000
The
Montessori
Curriculum
M
ontessori offers a rigorous
and innovative academic
program. The curriculum
is organized into a spiral of integrat-
ed studies, rather than a traditional
model in which the curriculum is
compartmentalized into separate
subjects, with given topics consid-
ered only once at a specific grade lev-
el. In the early years, lessons are in-
troduced simply and concretely and
are reintroduced several times over
succeeding years at increasing de-
grees of abstraction and complexity.
The course of study uses an inte-
grated thematic approach that ties
the separate disciplines of the cur-
riculum together into studies of the
physical universe, the world of na-
ture, and the human experience.
Literature, the arts, history, social
issues, political science, economics,
science and the study of technology
all complement one another. This in-
tegrated approach is one of
Montessoris great strengths.
As an example, when students
study ancient Greece, they also study
Greek mythology, read stories and
novels set in the Grecian world, cre-
ate authentic costumes, build mod-
els of Greek buildings, and explore
Grecian art. They study the climate,
ecosystems, flora, fauna, and natural
resources of the world of the ancient
Greeks. And they prepare plays, cele-
brate festivals, and restage their own
version of historical events.
 Science Language
Math Arts Literature

Technology
Drama

Economics
Dance

Art
Practical
History Life Skills
Foreign
Languages Geography Geometry Music

The Integrated Montessori Curriculum

 How Can
Montessori
Teachers
Meet the
Needs of
So Many
Different
Children?
M
ontessori teachers do more
than present curriculum.
The secret of any great
teacher is helping learners get to the
point that their minds and hearts are
open and they are ready to learn, where
the motivation is not focused on getting
good grades but, instead, involves a ba-
sic love of learning. As parents know
their own childrens learning styles and
temperaments, teachers, too, develop
this sense of each childs uniqueness by
developing a relationship over a period
of years with the child and her parents.
Dr. Montessori believed that teachers
should focus on the child as a person,
not on the daily lesson plan. Montessori
nurtures and inspires the human poten-
tial, leading children to ask questions,
think for themselves, explore, investi-
gate, and discover. Our ultimate objec-
tive is to help them to learn how to learn
independently, retaining the curiosity,
creativity, and intelligence with which
they were born. Montessori teachers
dont simply present lessons; they are fa-
cilitators, mentors, coaches, and guides.
Traditional teachers tell us that they
teach students the basic facts and skills
that they will need to succeed in the
world. Studies show that in many class-
rooms, as much as 40 percent of the day
may be spent on discipline and class-
room management. Montessori educa-
tors play a very different role.
Wanting to underscore the very dif-
ferent role played by adults in her
schools, Dr. Montessori used the title
directress instead of teacher. In
Italian, the word implies the role of the
coordinator or administrator of an office
or factory. Today, many Montessori
schools prefer to call their teachers
guides.
Tomorrows Child Magazine Back to School 2000
Whatever theyre called, Montessori
teachers are rarely the center of atten-
tion, for this is not their class; it is the
Childrens House.
Normally Montessori teachers will
not spend much time working with the
whole class at once. Their primary role
is to prepare and maintain the physical,
intellectual, and social/emotional envi-
ronment within which the children will
work. Certainly, a key aspect of this is
the selection of intriguing and develop-
mentally appropriate opportunities for
learning to meet the needs and interests
of each child in the class.
Montessori Guides
Have Five Basic Goals:
to awaken the childs spirit and
imagination;
to encourage his normal desire for
independence and high sense of
self-esteem;
to help him develop the kindness,
courtesy, and self-discipline that will
allow him to become a full member
of society;
to help children learn how to ob-
serve, question, and explore ideas
independently;
and, having created a spirit of joyful
learning, to help the child to master
the skills and knowledge of their
society.
Montessori guides rarely present a les-
son to more than a handful of children
at one time, and they limit lessons to
brief, efficient presentations. The goal is
to give the children just enough to cap-
ture their attention and spark their inter-
est, intriguing them so that they will
come back on their own to work with
the materials.
Montessori guides closely monitor
their students progress, keeping the
level of challenge high. Because they
normally work with each child for two
or three years, guides get to know their
students strengths and weaknesses, in-
terests, and anxieties extremely well.
Montessori guides often use the chil-
drens interests to enrich the curriculum
and provide alternate avenues for ac-
complishment and success.
Montessori Teaches
Children to Think and
Discover for Themselves
Montessori schools are designed to help
children discover and develop their tal-
ents and possibilities.
While learning the right answers may
get a child through school, learning how
to become a lifelong, independent
learner will take her anywhere! Montes-
sori teaches children to think, not sim-
ply to memorize, feed back, and forget.
Rather than present students with
the right answers, Montessori educators
tend to ask the right questions and chal-
lenge them to discover the answers for
themselves. Older students are encour-
aged to do their own research, analyze
what they have found, and come to
their own conclusions.
Respect and Independence:
The Foundation of the
Montessori Approach
Montessori does not believe that intelli-
gence is fixed at birth, nor is the human
potential anywhere near as limited, as it
sometimes seems in traditional educa-
tion. The validity of these beliefs has
been confirmed by the research of
Piaget, Gardner, Coleman, and many
others.
We know that each child is a full and
complete individual in her own right.
Even when she is very small, she de-
serves to be treated with the full and sin-
cere respect that we would extend to
her parents. Respect breeds respect and
creates an atmosphere within which
learning is tremendously facilitated.
Success in school is directly tied to
the degree to which children believe
that they are capable and independent
human beings. If they knew the words,
even very young children would ask:
Help me learn to do it for myself!
17
 By allowing children to develop a
meaningful degree of independence
and self-discipline, Montessori sets a
pattern for a lifetime of good work
habits and a sense of responsibility.
Students are taught to take pride in
doing things well.
Freedom of Movement
and Independently
Chosen Work
Children touch and manipulate every-
thing in their environment. In a very
real sense, the adult mind is hand
made, because it is through their
movement, exploration, and manipu-
lation that children build up a store-
house of impressions about the physi-
cal world. Children learn by doing,
and this requires movement and
spontaneous investigation.
Montessori children are free to
move about, working alone or with
others at will. They may select any ac-
tivity and work with it as long as they
wish, so long as they do not disturb
anyone, damage anything, and put it
back where it belongs when they are
finished.
Many exercises, especially at the
early childhood level, are designed to
draw their attention to the sensory
properties of objects within the envi-
ronment: size, shape, color, texture,
weight, smell, sound, etc. Gradually
children learn to pay attention, seeing
more clearly small details in the things
around them. They begin to observe
and appreciate their environment,
which is a key in helping them discov-
er how to learn.
Freedom is a second critical issue
as children begin their journey of dis-
covery. Our goal is less to teach them
facts and concepts, but rather to help
them fall in love with the process of
focusing their complete attention on
something and solving its riddle with
enthusiasm.
Work that has been assigned by
adults rarely leads to such enthusiasm
and interest as does work that chil-
dren freely choose for themselves.
The Montessori classroom is a learn-
ing laboratory in which children are al-
lowed to explore, discover, and select
their own work.
Children become comfortable and
confident in their ability to master the
environment, ask questions, puzzle
out the answer, and learn without
needing to be spoon fed by an adult.
18
What is the most important thing that
children get from Montessori?
T
he Montessori approach is often described as an education for
life. When we try to define what children take away from their
years in Montessori, we need to expand our vision to include more
than just the basic academic skills.
Normally, Americans think of a school as a place where one generation
passes down basic skills and culture to the next. From this perspective, a
school only exists to cover a curriculum, not to develop character and self-
esteem.
But in all too many traditional and highly competitive schools, students
memorize facts and concepts with little understanding, only to quickly for-
get them when exams are over. Studies show that many bright students
are passive learners. They coast through school, earning high grades, but
rarely pushing themselves to read material that hasnt been assigned, ask
probing questions, challenge their teachers cherished opinions, or think
for themselves. They typically want teachers to hand them the right an-
swer.
The problem isnt with todays children, but with todays schools.
Children are as gifted, curious, and creative as they ever were, when
theyre working on something that captures their interest and which they
have voluntarily chosen to explore.
Montessori schools work to develop culturally literate children and nur-
ture their fragile sparks of curiosity, creativity, and intelligence. They have
a very different set of priorities from traditional schools, and a very low re-
gard for mindless memorization and superficial learning.
Montessori students may not memorize as many facts, but they do tend
to become self-confident, independent thinkers who learn because they
are interested in the world and enthusiastic about life, not simply to get a
good grade.
Montessori believed that there was more to life than simply the pursuit
of wealth and power. To her, finding ones place in the world, work that is
meaningful and fulfilling, and developing the inner peace and depth of
soul that allows us to love are the most important goals in life.
Helen Keller, inspired by Montessori, wrote:
I believe that every child has hidden away somewhere in his being noble capacities
which may be quickened and developed if we go about it in the right way, but we shall
never properly develop the higher nature of our little ones while we continue to fill their
minds with the so-called basics. Mathematics will never make them loving, nor will ac-
curate knowledge of the size and shape of the world help them to appreciate its beauties.
Let us lead them during the first years to find their greatest pleasure in nature. Let them
run in the fields, learn about animals, and observe real things. Children will educate
themselves under the right conditions. They require guidance and sympathy far more
than instruction.
Montessori schools give children the sense of belonging to a family and
help them learn how to live with other human beings.
To reduce these principles to the most simplistic form, Dr. Montessori
proposed that we could make peace by healing the wounds of the human
heart and by producing a child who is independent, at peace with herself,
and secure. Dr. Montessori envisioned her movement as essentially lead-
ing to a reconstruction of society.
Montessori schools are different, but it isnt just because of the materi-
als that are used in the classrooms. Look beyond the pink towers and gold-
en beads, and youll discover that the classroom is a place where children
really want to be because it feels a lot like home.
Tomorrows Child Magazine Back to School 2000

ormalization is a term that caus-
es a great deal of confusion and
some concern among many
new Montessori parents. Normalization
is a terrible choice of words. It suggests
that we are going to help children who
are not normal to become normal.
This is not what Dr. Montessori meant.
Normalization is Montessoris name for
the process that takes place in Montes-
sori classrooms around the world,
through which young children learn to
focus their intelligence, concentrate
their energies for long periods, and take
tremendous satisfaction from their
work.
One mother put it this way: My child
just does not act the same now that hes
been in Montessori a while. He usually
runs from one thing to another. In
Montessori, he looks interested, some-
times puzzled, and often completely ab-
sorbed. I think of normalization as a
kind of satisfaction that he seems to take
from what he calls hard work.
In his book, Maria Montessori: Her
Life and Work, E.M. Standing described
the following characteristics of normal-
ization in the child between the age of
three and six:
A love of order
A love of work
Profound spontaneous
concentration
Tomorrows Child Magazine Back to School 2000
Attachment to reality
Love of silence and of
working alone
Sublimation of the possessive
instinct
Obedience
Independence and initiative
Spontaneous self-discipline
Joy
The power to act from real
choice and not just from idle
curiosity
Kay Futrell in her classic little book,
The Normalized Child, describes Dr.
Montessoris amazement when the 60
frightened and ill-disciplined inner-city
children of her first Childrens House
began to respond to the new environ-
ment.
What followed seemed incredible even to Dr.
Montessori, for the deprived children blos-
somed under this freedom, and the possibility
of doing work suited to their needs. They re-
vealed to her not only their enormous capaci-
ty for intellectual accomplishment, but a
strange character of sweetness and serenity.
They displayed a truly uncorrupted spirit,
scorning rewards and punishment, and
finding their joy in the prodigious work which
involved them. They came from these labors
refreshed, as from a creative experience, and
as they worked, they grew in inner discipline
and peace.
The sight of these children who displayed the
truly normal characteristics of childhood,
was the force which motivated Montessori
for the remainder of her life. This secret of
childhood she pursued with all the vitality of
the genius who found her raison dtre,and become self-directed, composed and
from her tireless observations and efforts,
evolved her perception of the childs psychic
personality.
As she traveled from country to country, lec-
turing, training teachers, helping to establish
school after school, this same phenomenon
was observed wherever conditions promoting
its growth were perfectly realized.
This normalized child is the image which
Montessori teachers keep uppermost in their
minds. This is what we are striving for, what
we hope to achieve. However, this child will
only appear only if we conscientiously pre-
pare ourselves and our classrooms and if we
can build on the proper preparation in the
childs home.
Normalization is another word for
what we call Montessoris Joyful
Scholars.
What Outcomes
Can We Look for
If We Give Our
Child a Montessori
Education?
T
here are eight primary aspects to
what we normally look for in chil-
dren who have grown up with a
Montessori education:
Academic Preparation: Montessori pre-
pares students both for higher education
and for life. On an academic level, Montes-
sori helps students attain skills that allow
them to become independently function-
ing adults and life-long learners.
Intrinsic Motivation: Innate desire drives
Montessori children to engage in activities
for enjoyment and satisfaction.
Internalized Ground Rules and the
Ability to Work with External Authority:
Montessori students are normally comfort-
able with ground rules that set the bound-
aries for their interactions within the
school community. Because these ground
rules become internalized, Montessori stu-
dents normally learn to behave appropri-
ately whether or not teachers are present.
Social Responsibility: Montessori chil-
dren tend to be quite sensitive to the
rights and needs of others. They tend to
make a positive contribution to their
community.
Autonomy: Montessori students tend to
morally independent.
Confidence and Competence:
Montessori students tend to become con-
fident, competent, self-reflective, and,
thereby, successful. They are generally not
afraid of failure and learn from mistakes.
Creativity and Originality of Thought:
Montessori students normally become
confident in expressing their own ideas
and creativity. They recognize the value of
their own work, respect the creative
process of others and are willing to share
their ideas regardless of the risk of rejec-
tion. Montessori students tend to take
great satisfaction in self-expression.
Spiritual Awareness: Montessori students
are often exceptionally compassionate,
empathetic, and sensitive to the natural
world and the human condition.
19
 Will My Child Does Montessori
Prepare Children for
Be Able to
the Real World?

I
Adjust to
n a word, yes! Heres why.
Traditional Montessori helps children master
the intellectual skills and knowl-
School after edge that are basic to our culture and
technology. As Montessori students
Montessori? master one level of academic skills they
are able to apply themselves to increas-
ingly challenging work across the acade-
mic disciplines. They tend to be reflec-
tive scholars. They write, speak, and
think clearly and thoughtfully. They
ontessori children by the end of age five are normally curious self-confi- have learned how to learn by doing real
dent learners who look forward to going to school. They are normally things in the real world experiential
engaged, and enthusiastic. learning. They have learned how to inte-
What teacher wouldnt give her left arm for a room filled with children like grate new concepts, analyze data, and
that? Well, truthfully over the years weve found some who consider these chil- think critically. Children who grow up in
dren disruptive. Montessori schools tend to be culturally
Disruptive? A polite, independent Montessori child, disruptive? Well, first off, literate, well educated, and highly suc-
lets remember that Montessori children are real human beings, and not all chil- cessful in university and later life.
dren who attend Montessori fit the idealized description. However, enough do
that the generalization is often fairly accurate. Montessori develops intrinsic motiva-
Montessori children, by age six, have spent three or four years in a school tion: the innate desire that drives stu-
where they were treated with honesty and respect. While there were clear expec- dents to engage in an activity for enjoy-
tations and ground rules, within that framework their opinions and questions ment and satisfaction.
were taken quite seriously. Unfortunately, there are still some teachers and
schools where children who ask questions are seen as challenging authority. You Montessori cultivates creativity and
can imagine an independent Montessori child asking his new teacher, But why originality: Montessori students are nor-
do I have to ask each time I need to use the bathroom? or Why do I have to mally exceptionally creative in their
stop my work right now? thinking and confident in self-expres-
We also have to remember that children are different. One child may be very sion. They recognize the value of their
sensitive or have somewhat special needs that might not be met well in a own ideas, respect the creative process
teacher-centered traditional classroom. Other children can go anywhere. In gen- of others, and are willing to explore
eral, there is nothing inherent in Montessori that causes children to have a hard ideas together in search of truth or new
time if they are transferred to traditional schools. Some will be bored. Others solutions.
may not understand why everyone in the class has to do the same thing at the
same time. But most figure the new setting out fairly quickly, make new friends, Montessori students tend to be extra-
and succeed within the definition of success understood in their new schools. ordinarily self-confident and competent.
Naturally, there are trade-offs. The curriculum in Montessori schools is often They perceive themselves as successful
much more enriched and accelerated than many found in other nursery and ele- people but are not afraid of making and
mentary schools in the United States. The values and attitudes of the children learning from their mistakes.
and teachers may also be quite different. Learning will often be focused more on
adult assigned tasks done more by rote than with enthusiasm and understand- Montessori students do not see
ing. themselves as children, but as young
There is an old saying that if something is working, dont try to fix it. This members of the world. They tend to
leads many families to continue their children in Montessori at least through the look up to teachers and other adults as
sixth grade. As more Montessori high schools are opened in the United States, it mentors, friends, and guides, rather
is likely that this trend will continue. than as unwelcome taskmasters who
But other families, for financial or other reasons, dont plan to have their chil- place limits on their freedom.
dren continue in Montessori. They often ask if there is any particular age level at
which Montessori children tend to find the transition particularly difficult? There Children who grow up in Montessori
is no absolute answer, because of individual differences in children and the next rarely feel the need to rebel and act out.
schools that are available to them. But in general, we strongly recommend that Although even Montessori children will
parents plan to keep their children in Montessori at least through the end of explore the limits and test their parents
kindergarten. Every year, in the winter issue of Tomorrows Child,we prepare an resolve, they basically follow an inner
article that considers the reasons behind this in greater detail. creed of self-respect.
Ideally, families should consider a commitment through at least elementary They accept limits and tend to follow
school, although, I can make a strong case that it is during the difficult middle- common sense. Moreover, they have a
school years that children most need what Montessori has to offer. tendency to reach out consciously to
their friends and the larger community,
20 Tomorrows Child Magazine Back to School 2000

seeking ways to help others and make
a positive contribution to the world.
Montessori children are not easily
influenced by their peer group to do
anything stupid. Like all of us, children
who grow up in Montessori schools
want to have friends and are affected by
their interests and attitudes. On the
other hand, in addition to having
grown up in a culture that consistently
teaches and follows universal values of
kindness, honor, and respect,
Montessori children tend to think for
themselves.
Montessori students are often spiri-
tually alive, exceptionally compassion-
ate, empathetic, and sensitive to the
natural world and the human condi-
tion.
Montessori children tend to be ter-
rific kids. They have all the values and
attitudes that pay off in college and the
real world. They arent afraid of hard
work. They are eager to learn, think,
and explore new ideas. They enjoy peo-
ple and know how to develop strong
friendships. They generally follow the
rules and act responsibly. They live
from a basic sense of self-respect and
rarely get themselves into self-destruc-
tive situations. They tend to be self-dis-
ciplined and fairly well organized. They
tend to meet deadlines, come to class
prepared, and actually enjoy their class-
es. They are the average college profes-
sors dream come true!
In the world after college, they tend
to become lifelong learners, creative
and energetic employees, and quite of-
ten entrepreneurs. Montessori stu-
dents tend to grow up to be people of
great character; someone you can trust
and on whom you can depend. They
have warmth, humanity, and compas-
sion. Their lives tend to reflect both joy
and dignity. This is the sort of men and
women we hope our children will grow
up to be.
Tomorrows Child Magazine Back to School 2000
Frequently Asked Questions
Isnt Montessori elitist?
Montessori is an educational philosophy and approach that can be found in
all sorts of settings, from the most humble to large, well equipped campus-
es. In general, Montessori schools consciously strive to create and maintain
a diverse student body, welcoming families of every ethnic background and
religion, and using scholarships and financial aid to keep their school acces-
sible to deserving families. Montessori is also found in the public sector as
magnet public-school programs, Headstart centers, and as charter schools.
Is Montessori opposed to competition?
No. Dr. Montessori simply observed that competition is an ineffective tool
to motivate children to learn and work hard in school.
Traditionally schools challenge students to compete with each other for
grades, class rankings, and special awards. For example, tests are graded on
a curve developed from the performance of the students in that class.
Students are constantly measured against their classmates, rather than con-
sidered for their individual progress.
In Montessori schools, students learn to collaborate with each other
rather than mindlessly compete. Students discover their own innate abili-
ties and develop a strong sense of independence, self-confidence, and self-
discipline. In an atmosphere in which children learn at their own pace and
compete only against themselves, they learn not to be afraid of making mis-
takes. They quickly find that few things in life come easily, and they can try
again without fear of embarrassment.
Dr. Montessori argued that for an education to profoundly touch a
childs heart and mind, he must be learning because he is curious and in-
terested, not simply to earn the highest grade in the class.
Montessori children compete with each other every day, both in class
and on the playground. Dr. Montessori, herself an extraordinary student
and a very high achiever, was never opposed to competition on principle.
Her objection was to using competition to create an artificial motivation to
get students to achieve.
Montessori schools allow competition to evolve naturally among chil-
dren, without adult interference unless the children begin to show poor
sportsmanship. The key is the childs voluntary decision to compete, rather
than having it imposed on him by the school.
Is it true that Montessori children
never play?
All children play. They explore new things playfully. They watch something
of interest with a fresh, open mind. They enjoy the company of treasured
adults and other children. They make up stories. They dream. They imag-
ine. This impression stems from parents who dont know what to make of
the incredible concentration, order, and self-discipline that we commonly
see among Montessori children. Montessori students also tend to take the
things they do in school seriously. It is common for them to respond that
this is my work. when adults ask what they are playing with. They work
hard and expect their parents to treat them and their work with respect.
But it is joyful, playful, and anything but drudgery.
21

More
Frequently
Asked
Questions
You will not normally find play
kitchens, dress-up corners and dolls in
a Montessori class for children under
age six, because children are using real
tools and doing real things, instead of
pretending. However, fantasy and cre-
ativity are important aspects of a
Montessori childs experience.
Montessori classrooms incorporate
art, music, dance, and creative drama
throughout the curriculum.
Imagination plays a central role as chil-
dren explore how the natural world
works, visualize other cultures and an-
cient civilizations, and search for cre-
ative solutions to real life problems.
In Montessori schools, the arts are
normally integrated into the rest of the
curriculum. They are modes of ex-
ploring and expanding lessons that
have been introduced in science, his-
tory, geography, language arts, and
mathematics.
Art and music history and apprecia-
tion are woven throughout the history
and geography curricula. Traditional
folk arts are used to extend the cur-
riculum as well. Students participate in
singing, dance, and creative move-
ment with teachers and music special-
ists. Students dramatic productions
make other times and cultures come
alive.
While Montessori students are allowed
considerable latitude to pursue topics
that interest them, this freedom is not
absolute. Within every society there are
cultural norms; expectations for what a
student should know and be able to do
by a certain age. Experienced Montes-
sori teachers are conscious of these
standards and provide as much struc-
ture and support as is necessary to en-
sure that students live up to them. If for
some reason, it appears that a child sim-
ply needs time and support until he or
she is developmentally ready to catch
up, Montessori teachers provide it non-
judgmentally.
Many parents have heard that Montes-
sori schools do not believe in home-
work, grades, and tests. This is really a
misunderstanding of Montessoris in-
sights.
Homework
Most Montessori schools do not assign
homework at all below the elementary
level. When it is assigned to older chil-
dren it rarely involves page after page of
busywork, but meaningful, interesting
assignments that expand on the topics
that the children are pursuing in class.
Many assignments invite parents and
children to work together.
Homework should never become a
battleground between adult and child.
One of our goals as parents and teach-
ers should be to help the children learn
how to get organized, budget time, and
follow through until the work is com-
pleted. Ideally, home challenges will
give parents and children a pleasant op-
portunity to work together on projects
that give both parent and child a sense
of accomplishment. They are intended
to enrich and extend the curriculum.
Homework doesnt need to be bor-
ing! Montessori challenges children to
think, explore, and pursue tangible pro-
jects that give them a sense of satisfac-
tion. Homework is intended to afford
students the opportunity to practice and
reinforce skills introduced in the class-
room.
Moreover, there is a certain degree of
self-discipline that can be developed
within the growing child through the
Tomorrows Child Magazine Back to School 2000
process of completing assignments in-
dependently.
Many elementary Montessori classes
send home packets of At Home
Challenges for each age group in the
class. The children have an entire week
to complete them. When the week is
over, teachers will normally sit down
with the children to review what
worked, what they enjoyed, and what
they found difficult or unappealing.
Depending on the childs level, as-
signments normally involve some read-
ing, research, writing, and something
tangible to accomplish. They may be or-
ganized into three groups: 1) Things to
be experienced, such as reading a book,
visiting the museum, or going to see a
play; 2) Things to learn, stated in terms
of skills and knowledge, such as See if
you can learn how to solve these prob-
lems well enough that you can teach the
skill to a younger student; and 3) Things
to be submitted, such as a play, essay,
story, experiment, or model.
When possible, teachers will normal-
ly build in opportunities for children to
choose among several alternative assign-
ments. Sometimes teachers will prepare
individually negotiated weekly assign-
ments with each student.
Tests
Montessori children usually dont think
of our assessment techniques as tests so
much as challenges. Early childhood
Montessori teachers observe their chil-
dren at work or ask them to teach a les-
son to another child to confirm their
knowledge and skill. Most elementary
Montessori teachers will give their stu-
dents informal, individual oral exams or
have the children demonstrate what
they have learned by either teaching a
lesson to another child or by giving a
formal presentation. The children also
take and prepare their own written tests
to administer to their friends. Students
are normally working toward mastery,
rather than being graded using a stan-
dard letter grade scheme.
Standardized Tests
Very few Montessori schools test chil-
dren under the first or second grades;
however, most regularly give elementary
students quizzes on the concepts and
skills that they have been studying.
Many schools ask their older students to
take annual standardized tests.
While Montessori students tend to
score very well, Montessori educators
frequently argue that standardized test-
ing is inaccurate, misleading, and stress-
ful for children. The ultimate problem
with standardized tests in our country is
that they have often been misused, mis-
understood, and misinterpreted in oth-
er schools. Tests can be fairly useful
when seen as a simple feedback loop,
giving both parents and school a general
sense of how students are progressing.
Although standardized tests may not
offer a terribly accurate measure of a
childs basic skills and knowledge, in our
culture, test-taking skills are just another
practical life lesson that children need to
master.
Reporting Student Progress
Because Montessori believes in individu-
ally paced academic progress, and en-
courages children to explore their inter-
ests rather than simply complete work
assigned by their teachers, we dont as-
sign grades or rank students within each
class according to their achievement.
At the elementary level, students will
often prepare a monthly self-evaluation
of the previous months school work.
When completed, they will meet with
the teachers, who will review it and add
their comments and observations.
In many Montessori schools, children
compile a collection of their work that is
pulled together in a portfolio of the
years work.
Most schools schedule family confer-
ences two or three times a year to re-
view their childrens portfolios and self-
evaluations and go through the teach-
ers assessment of their childrens
progress.
Typically once or twice a year
Montessori teachers will prepare a writ-
ten narrative evaluation of the students
work, social development, and mastery
of fundamental skills.
Every child has areas of special gifts, a
unique learning style, and some areas
that can be considered challenges. Each
child is unique. Montessori is designed
to allow for differences. It allows stu-
dents to learn at their own pace, and is
quite flexible in adapting for different
learning styles. In many cases, children
with mild physical handicaps or learning
disabilities may do very well in a
Montessori classroom setting. On the
other hand, some children do much
better in smaller, more structured class-
Tomorrows Child Magazine Back to School 2000
rooms. Each sit-
uation has to
be carefully
evaluated indi-
vidually to en-
sure that the
program can
successfully
meet a given
childs needs
and learning
style.
Most
Montessori ed-
ucators would agree that Montessori is a
good fit for most children but may not
be the right match for their parents.
Everything depends on what your
family believes to be true about your
children and important in their educa-
tion.
Do you believe that children should
be treated with dignity and respect and
be encouraged to be independent, self-
confident, and self-disciplined?
Do you believe that the best way to
discipline is by being consistent, model-
ing the correct behavior, and by con-
sciously teaching children how to do
things correctly?
Do you believe that education
should be enchanting, intriguing, and
delightful, rather than traditionally struc-
tured and highly competitive?
If so, Montessori may be right for
you.
The answer is both yes and no. Montes-
sori schools are often successful with
children who would challenge any
school, including the highly distractible
and impulsive ones of whom parents
typically have the most concern. The
reason why should be obvious;
Montessori is designed to be flexible,
adapting the program to meet the
needs of each given child. It also allows
children to move about, socialize inde-
pendently (rather than work as part of a
group), and progress at their own pace.
This doesnt mean though that every
class and every Montessori teacher can
meet the needs of every child. This is es-
pecially true if a child is violent, destruc-
tive, or excessively disturbing of the
peace and order of the classroom. Each
decision has to be made on a case by
case basis.
Many people assume that Montessori
schools are essentially alike. In reality,
Montessori schools can differ dramati-
cally, in size, facilities, programs, and
emotional climate. They share a com-
mon philosophy and basic approach,
but there may be tremendous variation
among schools that use the name
Montessori. There are more than 4,000
Montessori schools in North America,
but every one is unique. Even within the
same school, each class may look and
feel quite different from the others, re-
flecting the interests and personalities of
the teachers; however, certain charac-
teristics will be found in all classes that
are honestly following the Montessori
approach.
Dr. Montessori was a brilliant student
of child development, and the approach
that has evolved out of her research has
stood the test for more than 90 years in
Montessori schools around the world.
The Montessori approach has three
great qualities: the model is replicable, it
can be adapted successfully into all sorts
of new situations, and it is sustainable
(Montessori programs dont tend to self-
destruct after a few years, as do many
other educational reforms.) However,
the only pure Montessori educator was
Dr. Maria Montessori herself. The rest of
us interpret and filter her ideas through
our personalities and experience.
23
 lthough most Montessori schools
try to remain faithful to their un-
derstanding of Dr. Montessoris
insights and research, they have all, to
some degree, been influenced by the
evolution of our culture and technology.
Perhaps the more relevant question
in selecting a Montessori school is to
consider how well it matches your sense
of what you want for your child. No one
educational approach can be right for
every learner. The wisest goal is to seek
out the best fit, not only between the
student and the school, but also be-
tween the parents values and goals for
their childs education and what a given
school can realistically deliver. I believe
that finding the right school for mom
and dad is as important as finding the
right school for the child.
In the end, the selection of a
Montessori school comes down to a
matter of personal style and preference.
If you visit a school and find yourself in
harmony with its ambiance and practice,
it will represent at least one example of
what you define to be a good school.
In determining which school is best,
we all have to trust our eyes, ears, and
gut instincts. Nothing beats personal ob-
servation. The school that one parent
raves about, may be completely wrong
for anothers child. Conversely, another
parent may have decided that
Montessori doesnt work, while it
clearly is working very well for your fami-
ly. Rely on your own experience, not
hearsay from other parents.
How can I know if Ive found a
real Montessori school?
Characteristics of an
Authentic Montessori School
Dr. Nancy McCormick Rambush,
founder of the American Montessori
Society and co-founder of the
Montessori Foundation, identified the
following characteristics of an authen-
tic Montessori school:*
* The following ideas are excerpted from
The Authentic American Montessori School:
A Guide to the Self-Study, Evaluation, and
Accreditation of American Schools
Committed to Montessori Education, by Dr.
Nancy McCormick Rambush and Dr. John
Stoops, published in1992 by the Commission
on Elementary Schools of the Middle States
Association of Colleges and Schools and the
American Montessori Society.
The Montessori Learning Environ-
ment (A Child-Centered Environ-
ment): The focus of activity in the
Montessori setting is on childrens learn-
ing, not on teachers teaching. Generally
student will work individually or in that children are driven by their desire
small, self-selected groups. There will be
very few whole-group lessons.
A Responsive, Prepared Environment:
The environment should be designed to
meet the needs, interests, abilities, and
development of the children in the
class. The teachers should design and
adapt the environment with this com-
munity of children in mind, rapidly
modifying the selection of educational
materials available, the physical layout,
and the tone of the class to fit the ever
changing needs of the children.
A Focus on Individual Progress and
Development: Within a Montessori pro-
gram, children progress at the own
pace, moving on to the next step in each
area of learning as they are ready. While
the child lives within a larger community
of children, each student is viewed as a
universe of one.
Montessori Learning Activities/Hands-
On Learning: In Montessori, students
rarely learn from texts or workbooks. In
all cases, direct, personal, hands-on con-
tact with either real things under study
or with concrete models that bring ab-
stract concepts to life allow children to
learn with much deeper understanding.
Spontaneous Activity: It is natural for
children to wiggle, touch things, and ex-
plore the world around them. Any true
Montessori environment encourages
children to move about freely, within
reasonable limits of appropriate behav-
ior. Much of the time they select work
that captures their interest and atten-
tion, although teachers also strive to
draw their attention and capture their
interest in new challenges and areas of
inquiry. And even within this atmos-
phere of spontaneous activity, students
do eventually have to master the basic
skills of their culture, even if they would
prefer to avoid them.
Active Learning: In Montessori class-
rooms, children not only select their
own work most of the time, but also
continue to work with tasks, returning
to continue their work over many weeks
or months, until finally the work is so
easy for them that they can teach it to
younger children. This is one of many
ways that Montessori educators use to
confirm that students have reached
mastery of each skill.
Self-Directed Activity: One of
Montessoris key concepts is the idea
to become independent and competent
beings in the world, to learn new things,
and master new skills. For this reason,
outside rewards to create external moti-
vation are both unnecessary and poten-
tially can lead to passive adults who are
dependent on others for everything
from their self-image to permission to
follow their dreams. In the process of
making independent choices and ex-
ploring concepts largely on their own,
Montessori children construct their own
sense of individual identity and right and
wrong.
Freedom within Limits: Montessori
children enjoy considerable freedom of
movement and choice; however, their
freedom always exists within carefully
defined limits on the range of their be-
havior. They are free to do anything ap-
propriate to the ground rules of the
community, but they are redirected
promptly and firmly if they cross over
the line.
Intrinsic Motivation to Learn: In
Montessori programs, children do not
work for grades or external rewards, nor
do they simply complete assignments
given them by their teachers. Children
learn because they are interested in
things and because all children share a
desire to become competent and inde-
pendent human beings.
Montessoris Communities of Learners
(Mixed-Age Groups): Montessori class-
rooms gather together children of two,
three, or more age levels into a family
group. Children remain together for sev-
eral years, with only the oldest students
moving on to the next class at years end.
A Family Setting: Montessori class-
rooms are communities of children and
adults. As children grow older and more
capable, they assume a great role in
helping to care for the environment and
meeting the needs of younger children
in the class. The focus is less on the
teachers and more on the entire com-
munity of children and adults, much like
one finds in a real family.
Cooperation and Collaboration,
Rather than Competition: Montessori
children are encouraged to treat one an-
other with kindness and respect. Insults
and shunning behavior tends to be
much more rare. Instead we normally
find children who have a great fondness
for one another and who a free from the
one-up-manship and needless interper-
sonal competition for attention and
prestige. Because children learn at their
own pace, and teachers refrain from
comparing students against one
another.
To Awaken and Nurture the Human
Spirit (The Child as a Spiritual Being):
Montessori saw children as far more
than simply scholars. In her view, each
child is a full and complete human be-
ing, the mother or father of the adult
man or woman she will become. Even
when very young, the child shares with
the rest of humanity hopes, dreams,
fears, emotions, and longing.
From her perspective, this goes beyond
mental health to the very core of ones
inner spiritual life. Montessori con-
sciously designs social communities and
educational experiences that cultivate
the childs sense of independence, self-
respect, love of peace, passion for self-
chosen work done well, and ability to re-
spect and celebrate the individual spirit
within people of all ages and the value
of all life.
Universal Values: Montessori deliber-
ately teaches children not only appropri-
ate patterns of polite behavior, but seeks
to instill basic universal values within the
core of the childs personality. These val-
ues include self-respect, acceptance of
the uniqueness and dignity of each per-
son we meet, kindness, peacefulness,
compassion, empathy, honor, individual
responsibility, and courage to speak
from our hearts.
Global Understanding: All Montessori
schools are, to a large degree, interna-
tional schools. They not only tend to at-
tract a diverse student body represent-
ing many ethnic backgrounds, religions,
and international backgrounds, but they
actively celebrate their diversity. The
curriculum is international in its heritage
and focus, and consciously seeks to pro-
mote a global perspective.
Service to Others: Montessoris spiritual
perspective leads Montessori schools to
consciously organize programs of com-
munity service ranging from daily contri-
butions to others within the class or
school setting, to community outreach
programs that allow children and adults
to make a difference in the lives of oth-
ers. The fundamental idea is one of
stewardship.
The Montessori Teacher
Authoritative: The teacher is firm at the
edges and empathetic at the center, the
kind of adult who responds empatheti-
cally to childrens feelings, while setting
clear and consistent limits.
Observer: The Montessori teacher is a
trained observer of childrens learning
and behavior. These careful observa-
tions are recorded and used to infer
where each student is, in terms of his or
her development, and leads the teacher
to know when to intervene in the childs
learning with a new lesson, a fresh chal-
lenge, or a reinforcement of basic
ground rules.
An Educational Resource: Montessori
teachers facilitate the learning process
by serving as a resource to whom the
children can turn as they pull together
information, impressions, and experi-
ences.
Role Model: Like all great teachers, the
Montessori educator deliberately mod-
els the behaviors and attitudes that she
is working to instill in her students.
Because of Montessoris emphasis on
character development, the Montessori
teacher normally is exceptionally calm,
kind, warm, and polite to each child.
What Montessori Teachers Do
Respectfully Engage the Learner: The
Montessori teacher recognizes that her
role is not so much to teach as to in-
spire, mentor, and facilitate the learning
process. The real work of learning be-
longs to the individual child. Because of
this, the Montessori educator remains
conscious of her role in helping each
child to fulfill his potential as a human
being and of creating an environment
for learning within which children will
feel safe, cherished, and empowered.
Facilitate the Match between the
Learner and Knowledge: Montessori
teachers are trained to identify the best
response to the changing interests and
needs of each child as a unique individ-
ual. Because they truly accept that chil-
dren learn in many different ways and at
their own pace, Montessori educators
understand that they must follow the
child, adjusting their strategies and
timetable to fit the development of each
of their pupils.
Environmental Engineer: Montessori
teachers organize appropriate social set-
tings and academic programs for chil-
dren at their own level of development.
They do this to a large degree through
the design of the classroom, selection
and organization of learning activities,
and structure of the day.
Accreditation
Often one sign of a schools commit-
ment to professional excellence is its
membership in one of the professional
Montessori societies, such as the
Association Montessori Internationale
(AMI), the American Montessori Society
(AMS), or the newly organized
International Montessori Council (IMC).
These organizations also offer schools
the opportunity to become accredited.
There are several dozen other smaller
organizations as well. Further, it is im-
portant to remember that many excel-
lent Montessori schools choose not to
affiliate with any national organization.
They are independent.
 Becoming a Montessori Teacher
M
ontessori parents often make
the best Montessori teachers.
Montessori is not simply a
method of teaching children to read; it
is a philosophy of life. Often the very fac-
tors that drew enthusiastic parents to a
Montessori school in the first place offer
the possibility of a professional life be-
yond their roles as parents.
Every year thousands of Montessori
parents approach their childrens
school, or are themselves approached,
about the possibility of taking Montes-
sori teacher training. A substantial num-
ber of Montessori teachers and adminis-
trators began as Montessori parents.
Montessori teacher training is avail-
able from several dozen centers and in-
stitutes across America and Canada. For
the internationally minded, courses are
available in many other countries as
well.
Courses usually involve a year of
study. In the US, many courses are orga-
nized into summer institutes, which can
involve up to ten weeks of full-time
study, followed by a supervised year-
long practicum/student teaching experi-
ence. Some courses run during the
school year. Most courses require a col-
lege degree; although, students who
have yet to complete their undergradu-
ate diploma may be able to take the
Montessori teacher-training course and
receive a certificate of completion when
they have earned their college degree.
Tuition can range from $4,000 to
$10,000, depending on the course.
There are dozens of different Montes-
sori societies and centers offering train-
ing. The quality can vary from mediocre
to superb. One basic consideration is
the credibility of the diploma received
upon completion. Two of the largest
and universally recognized Montessori
societies that certify Montessori teachers
are The American Montessori Society
(AMS) and the Association Montessori
Internationale (AMI). You should be
aware that some Montessori schools will
require teachers to hold one or the
other of these two credentials.
Courses accredited by the AMS are
often organized along the lines of a one
or two summer-long institute, followed
by a year of supervised student teaching.
AMS programs follow a course of study
which allows considerable flexibility and
adaptation. Courses accredited by AMI International Montessori
follow a much more standardized cur- Society (IMS)
riculum and normally require many 912 Thayer Avenue #207
more hours of classroom lecture and Silver Spring, MD 20910
less time spent in student teaching. 301-589-1127
Each model has its loyal advocates, and
selection of one over the other is a mat- Montessori Centre
ter of personality and preference. Internationale (MCI)
Teacher training is typically offered at [formerly St. Nicholas Montessori and
the infant-toddler (birth to age 2), early London Montessori Centres]
childhood (ages 3-6), lower elementary 18 Balderton Street
(ages 6-9), upper elementary (ages 9- London, WlY UTG, UK
12), and secondary levels (ages 12-15 Phone: 171-493-0165
and ages 15-18). Fax: 171-629-7808
Several organizations offer corre-
spondence courses, which allow stu- Montessori Accreditation
dents to complete a portion of their Council for Teacher Education
studies on an independent basis. Some (MACTE)*
states or individual schools may not ac- Dr. Gretchen Warner, Exec. Director
cept these credentials. If you are consid- Univ. of Wisconsin-Parkside
ering a correspondence course, it is al- Box 2000
ways a good idea to check with several Kenosha, WI 53141-2000
schools at which you would like to teach Tel: Toll-free: 1-888-446-2283 Local:
to determine if your training will meet 414-595-3335 Fax 404-595-3332
their standards. Email: warner@uwp.edu
Salaries for Montessori teachers in in-
dependent schools are generally accept- Montessori Institute
able but normally below those offered of America (MIA)
by local public schools. Teachers gener- PO Box 18659
ally report that lower salaries and bene- Spokane, WA 992828-8659
fits are more than offset by greater job 888-564-9556
satisfaction and freedom from the pa-
perwork and bureaucracy found in Montessori Educational
many public-school systems. Salaries are Programs International
often calculated on a scale based on de- (MEPI)
grees, experience, and duties. 5901 NW Waukomis Drive
Montessori teachers are generally in Kansas City, MO 64515
short supply, and in many situations cer- 816-741-6940
tified teachers will find several schools
competing for their services. Montessori World
Educational Institute
For more information about Montessori (MWEI)
teacher training programs, the following 3025 Monterey Rd.
organizations may be able to help you Atascedero, CA 93422
find a program that meets your needs: 805-466-2872
Association Montessori National Center for
Internationale/USA (AMI/USA) Montessori Education
410 Alexander St. (NCME)
Rochester, NY 14607 3941 Covered Bridge
Phone: 716-461-5920 Roswell, GA 30082
Fax: 716-461-0075 Phone/Fax: 770-437-80055
The American Montessori Society
(AMS) * MACTE is an umbrella organization
281 Park Avenue So. that accredited Montessori teacher edu-
New York, NY 10010 cation programs.
Phone: 212-358-1250
Fax: 212-358-1256